Canon Vixia HF M52 Camcorder Review

This Canon HF M52 doesn't shy away in low light.

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This review was published on April 27, 2012. Since then, this product may have been discontinued or replaced. Pricing and availability may differ from what is stated in the review.

Motion

Motion looked very good on the Canon HF M52, just like its predecessor the HF M40. In addition to its low artifacting and limited motion blur, the HF M52 includes two alternate frame rate options (PF24 and PF30) that are helpful for capturing alternate motion aesthetics. We noticed little to no rolling shutter problems with the camcorder and we were surprised to see limited artifacting even with the M52's MPEG-4 record mode (which records a lower-quality 720p video than the camcorder's AVCHD settings). The camcorder's video did have some color bleeding and trailing, and its overall motion results were a notch worse than the Sony PJ30V and Panasonic HC-X900M. Still, this is one of the better mid-range consumer camcorders for capturing motion, and the PF24 and PF30 frame rates are very useful. We do wish Canon would incorporate a 1080/60p mode on its Vixia camcorders as well—the HF M52 can only do 1080/60i. More on how we test motion.

See below for a full discussion of the available resolution and frame rate options for the HF M52

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Where To Buy

Canon Vixia HF M52

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.

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Where To Buy

Canon Vixia HF M52

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.

Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives.